scholarly journals Demystifying Lexical Inferencing: The Role of Aspects of Vocabulary Knowledge

2005 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 34 ◽  
Author(s):  
David D. Qian
Keyword(s):  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Canadian Universities ◽  
Adult Esl ◽  
Morphological Aspects ◽  
Lexical Inferencing ◽  
Unknown Words ◽  
Esl Learners

This empirical study examines how English-as-a-second-language (ESL) learners use their vocabulary knowledge for inferring meanings of unknown words in reading comprehension. The data, collected through interviews with young adult ESL students in Canadian universities, indicate that: (a) semantic and morphological aspects of vocabulary knowledge play an important role in learners' comprehension processes; (b) a positive relationship exists between certain aspects of learners' vocabulary knowledge and their lexical inferencing ability; and (c) in processing the meaning of unknown words, all learners looked for cues to meaning, but learners with varying depths of vocabulary knowledge tended to focus on varying strategies.

scholarly journals Lexical Inferencing in Listening: Depth of Vocabulary Knowledge and Listening Proficiency

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 105
Author(s):  
Elham Mohammadi Foomani
Keyword(s):  
Positive Relationship ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Knowledge Test ◽  
Efficient Strategy ◽  
Lexical Inferencing ◽  
Listening Proficiency ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Determining Factor

<p>Lexical inferencing as an efficient strategy to deal with unfamiliar words is suggested to be the most commonly used strategy among students, thus it has attracted much attention in the comprehension literature. While literature abounds with inferencing studies in reading, few studies have delved into the processes involved in listening. This study sought to investigate the role of depth of vocabulary knowledge (DVK) in lexical inferencing success and determine the relationship between students' DVK and listening proficiency. To this end, 56 upper-intermediate TOEFL applicants from 2 language institutes in Iran participated in this study. The participants were assigned to three levels of High- Mid- and Low-proficiency and in a consequent session were required to take the 40-item DVKT (Depth of Vocabulary Knowledge Test). In the final step the students sat for the lexical inferencing task and were required to identify the meaning of 17 unfamiliar words in 8 listening excerpts. The results indicated that DVK was a determining factor in lexical inferencing success, and that there was a positive relationship between students' DVK and their listening proficiency.</p>

Reading Comprehension for ESL Students. Processes of Perceiving Texts

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 278-282
Author(s):  
Maria-Miruna Ciocoi-Pop
Keyword(s):  
Reading Comprehension ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Cognitive Process ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
Second Language Reading ◽  
Linguistic Knowledge ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Unknown Words ◽  
Second Language Reading Comprehension ◽  
Esl Learners

AbstractIn an ever-increasing competitive academic setting, university students are striving for proficiency in their skills of foreign languages. This paper aims to highlight the significance of reading comprehension for students of English as a second language. Reading comprehension is a cognitive process, in other words, reading a text means processing and decoding it. Reading proficiency is linked to numerous aspects, such as age, cognitive processes, abilities, knowledge of the foreign language, etc. It goes without saying that the experience of reading a text, be it literary or non-literary, is more enjoyable without the need to constantly look up unknown words. This brief study also tries to show whether there is a direct connection between finding contentment in reading and comprehending the texts itself. Since reading is a key-skill verified in all major language exams, it is crucial for the ESL class, and not only, to include reading comprehension processes. Like any other skill, reading comprehension can be trained, as long as it is perceived as a procedure which requires the student’s commitment. Reading comprehension is a mechanism of phrase and concept identification, as well as of decoding meanings. Thus, this paper tries to emphasize the implications of reading comprehension and of teaching reading comprehension methods in the overall linguistic knowledge of ESL learners.

scholarly journals Enhancing ESL Learners’ Vocabulary Learning of Metaphorically-used Words

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 835 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonardo Veliz
Keyword(s):  
Small Groups ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
English As Second Language ◽  
Lexical Learning ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Esl Learners ◽  
Journal Entries ◽  
Experimental Group

The present study examined the role of awareness of metaphor in learners’ lexical learning. A total of 35 intermediate English as second language (ESL) students participated in this study. Participants were randomly divided into two small groups. One (N = 17) served as the control group and the other (N = 18) as the experimental group. Both groups were taught several metaphorically-used expressions over a period of six weeks. The groups differed in that the experimental group received systematic and explicit explanations of the source and target relationships that underlie metaphor, while the control group did not receive such instruction. Pre-tests and Post-tests were administered in order to measure lexical understanding of metaphorical items. Two journal entries were given out to students at two different intervals throughout the teaching period in order to tap into their views of how their lexical understanding of metaphor was changing, or not changing, over time. Results revealed that those students who received systematic and explicit explanations on the concrete experiential basis of metaphor showed greater understanding of metaphorical meanings, and seemed more inclined to unpacking their metaphoricity by looking at what lies behind them.

scholarly journals “I Need Child Care!”: Using Funds of Knowledge, Addressing Challenges, and Developing Literacies With a Classroom Community of Adult ESL Learners

2019 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 334-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aijuan Cun ◽  
Mary B. McVee ◽  
Christopher Vasquez
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Social Practice ◽  
Funds Of Knowledge ◽  
Video Recording ◽  
The United States ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Adult Esl ◽  
Life Challenge ◽  
Esl Learners

Many immigrants and refugees in the United States must confront different linguistic and cultural contexts in their everyday life. As part of a larger ethnographic study related to refugee families and literacy, this qualitative study explores how adult English as a second language (ESL) students help their classmate Htoo Eh find ways to deal with an everyday life challenge. This study utilized two supporting theoretical frameworks: funds of knowledge and literacy as a social practice. Data sources included field notes, transcripts of video recording, artifacts, as well as conservations with the teacher and welfare coordinators. Findings demonstrate that community members utilized two funds of knowledge in particular: social network and life experience to help the focal participant. Findings also showed that adult ESL students assisted their classmates in developing three types of literacies, which were finding and obtaining childcare, knowing how the system works, and communicating with the caseworker in order to deal with an everyday life challenge. These findings suggest that educators should recognize and value adult ESL learners’ funds of knowledge as well as incorporate the knowledge into instruction. Educators also should open up space for these learners to develop literacies together as a community.

scholarly journals Vocabulary Knowledge of Adult ESL Learners

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahmad Azman Mokhtar ◽  
Rafizah Mohd Rawian ◽  
Mohamad Fadhili Yahaya ◽  
Azaharee Abdullah ◽  
Mahani Mansor ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Adult Esl ◽  
Esl Learners

scholarly journals The Role of Depth versus Breadth of Vocabulary Knowledge in Success and Ease in L2 Lexical Inferencing

2013 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarvenaz Hatami ◽  
Mansoor Tavakoli
Keyword(s):  
Nous Avons ◽  
Likert Scale ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Lexical Inferencing

This study determines whether breadth and depth of vocabulary knowledge are related to L2 ease and success in lexical inferencing. To this end, two tests meas- uring vocabulary breadth and depth were administered to 50 participants. Two weeks later, all participants received an inferencing task and rated the degree of perceived ease in inferencing on a 6-point Likert-scale questionnaire. The findings indicated that although both vocabulary breadth and depth played an important role in lexical inferencing success, vocabulary breadth made a more important contribution. The results further revealed that neither vocabulary breadth nor depth had a significant effect on perceived ease of inferencing.Cette étude détermine dans quelle mesure l’étendue et la profondeur des connais- sances lexicales sont liées à la facilité en L2 et à la réussite en inférence linguis- tique. À cette fin, nous avons fait passer à cinquante participants deux examens pour évaluer l’étendue et la profondeur de leurs connaissances lexicales. Deux semaines plus tard, nous avons donné à tous les participants une tâche d’inférence et en avons évalué le degré de facilité perçue avec un questionnaire en 6 points sur l’échelle Likert. Les résultats indiquent que si l’étendue et la profondeur des connaissances lexicales jouent tous les deux un rôle important dans la réussite en inférence lexicale, l’étendue du vocabulaire y contribuent davantage. L’étude a également démontré que ni l’étendue ni la profondeur des connaissances lexi- cales n’ont un effet significatif sur la facilité d’inférence perçue.

scholarly journals Developing Lexical Competence Through Literature: A Study of Intermediate Students of Pakistan

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 164
Author(s):  
Muhammad Din ◽  
Mamuna Ghani
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Intermediate Students ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Lexical Competence ◽  
Esl Learners ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
And Task

This study brings to light the fact how much teaching English through literature renders any pay off in developing and honing the EFL/ESL learners’ lexical competence. This study strives to investigate the role of literature in developing the ESL/EFL learners’ lexical competence, find out the ESL/EFL learners’ attitude towards teaching lexical competence through literature, know the lexical competence level of the ESL learners, examine ESL/EFL learners’ vocabulary knowledge and get insight into the difference between the ESL/EFL learners’ receptive and productive knowledge of vocabulary. In the Pakistani context, literature seems to be inadequate language teaching tool at HSSC level. To achieve the set objectives, the researcher went for the quantitative research methodology. So, a questionnaire comprising of 15 items encompassing the different aspects of vocabulary was designed to collect data from 600 subjects (male/female) of intermediate level. The researcher has also conducted “Vocabulary Level Test” and “Word Associate Test” as achievement tests. The collected data were analyzed through software package (SPSS XX). The findings of this study explicitly reveal that the EFL learners remain unable to develop lexical competence when they are taught English through literature. This study recommends that the teaching of English should be application oriented and task-based strategies and activities should be resorted to by the EL educators.

scholarly journals Short- and Long-term Effects of Repetition Strategies on Vocabulary Retention

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 146
Author(s):  
Sultan Altalhab
Keyword(s):  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Classroom Context ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Vocabulary Retention ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
Oral Group ◽  
Short And Long Term ◽  
Unknown Words

This experimental study examines the role of oral and written repetition strategies in consolidating new vocabulary in the classroom context. The participants in this study were divided into three treatment groups: oral, written and oral+written. A pretest and three delayed post-tests given at one day, one week and six weeks intervals were utilised in the study. The short and long-term retention of 12 unknown words was investigated over one semester. The results revealed that all three types of repetition strategies were effective in retaining new vocabulary in the short-term. However, in the long-term, the oral+written group achieved superior results while the oral group was the least effective. The findings on the effectiveness of employing these strategies across two levels of vocabulary knowledge (meaning recall and form recall) are discussed. These findings demonstrate the importance of repetition strategies in vocabulary learning.                                                           

scholarly journals Improving Pronunciation of Adult ESL Students

2002 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 83 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Van Loon
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Classroom Teacher ◽  
Dramatic Improvement ◽  
Sentence Structure ◽  
Esl Students ◽  
Parts Of Speech ◽  
Adult Esl ◽  
Native Speakers Of English ◽  
Esl Learners ◽  
The Relationship

This article describes a classroom technique for improving the pronunciation of adult ESL learners. The technique is based on using stress and pausing in the same manner as native speakers of English. Dramatic improvement in pronunciation may be quickly achieved by showing learners how stress and pause are related to parts of speech and sentence structure. The article describes how a classroom teacher can develop an awareness of the relationship between grammar and pronunciation for learners.

scholarly journals Lexical Inferencing in Newspaper Columns: An Introspective Study

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 367
Author(s):  
Awais Shafiq ◽  
Abdullah Shafiq ◽  
Adnan Tahir ◽  
Muhammad Akbar Sajid
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Knowledge Sources ◽  
Lexical Knowledge ◽  
Syntactic Property ◽  
Lexical Inferencing ◽  
Text Length ◽  
Unknown Words ◽  
Esl Learners ◽  
Knowledge Of Learners ◽  
Lower Group

The significance of vocabulary in second or foreign language cannot be denied. The study explores the knowledge sources used by ESL learners in generating the meanings of the unknown words found in the columns of a daily Dawn. The study also investigates the effect of text length and syntactic property of unknown words in the inferential behaviors of learners. The participants of the study were chosen randomly from BS English, Govt. Emerson College, Multan. The amended taxonomy of knowledge sources and clues given by Bengleil and Paribakht (2004) was used in the study. The inferences verbalized their thoughts while guessing the meanings of the unknown words. The higher group was more successful in their guessing than the lower group. The study also found out that text length and the syntactic property of an unknown word his impact on the process of lexical inferencing. The study recommends the strategy of lexical inferencing as it facilitates reading comprehension and enhances lexical knowledge of learners.

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